Celebrity housemates will get Tsar treatment in Big Brother palace

The smash-hit Channel 5 reality show blasts back on to our screens in the new year.

And the new gang of famous guests will be put in a house resembling a Russian palace. There will be chandeliers, a grand fireplace, plush chairs and glamorous beds.

Instead of doors there will be golden picture frames and each “Tsar” contestant will have their own regal portrait on the wall.

But, in traditional Big Brother style, not all is quite as it seems.

REGAL LUXURY: The State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia [ALAMY]

Bosses are planning several shocks to keep the housemates on their toes.

A show insider said: “This is not a spa holiday. The palace may look like five-star luxury when they walk in but it could become a gilded cage.”

Bosses are planning to kick off the show in spectacular style with a launch night twist that is being kept a closely-guarded secret.

Emma Willis, 37, will front the show for a second year and former Celebrity Big Brother winner Rylan Clark, 25, will host spin-off series Celebrity Big Brother’s Bit On The Side.

Ex-Loose Women star Carol McGiffin, 53, is to be head panellist for the series, also appearing on the Saturday spin-off Bit On The Psych. She said: “I’m really looking forward to getting inside the housemates’ heads and seeing what makes them tick.”